Family Feud: Lucia Atosaki VS Æthelwulf
---- Walking onto that burning platform, Æthelwulf was finally going to be allowed to let out some steam. Having been more or less forced to participate in an event that doesn't concern him, being ordered around by people just because of the blood inside his veins. This whole event felt like a giant waste of time to the marksman, but if he had to be forced to fight pointless battles then the least he could hope for would be fighting off against someone strong. Not wanting to waste more time than necessary, Æthelwulf simply started to make his way through the ruins while his hands grabbed firmly around the handles of his guns. The smoke around him obscured any chances of having him spotting the opponents from afar, so he'd simply have to make do with shooting the first thing that moved. Killing people in this event was prohibited and thus he was forced to use blunt rounds during this encounter, or at least whenever he was aiming for the head. As soon as Lucia saw the flames, she knew that she was going to have a fun time with this one. Even though her Celestial Spirit didn't concern herself with fire, Lucia was luckily capable of Fire Magic. Drawing forth Malphas' key, Lucia's call wasn't exactly too discreet but the crackling of the flames did good enough to mask over her voice. In a flash of light, the Spirit was summoned in front of the adopted Atosaki, bowing her head as soon as she appeared. "New master, what needs requires my service today?" She asked respectfully. "I need an escort Malphas, there's someone else in this arena with us and I'll need you to protect me whilst you do the same for yourself." Lucia ordered her voice kind and gentle, more like an innocent request rather than a command. Malphas bowed and accepted her job drawing forth her blade as Lucia held her hand out and attracted the flames to her hand, much like a magnet does with metal. "Shall we proceed?" She asked as the two began making their way to the other side of the arena, Lucia's hands shielded with an aura of fire. Still scouring the battlefield for his opponent, Æthelwulf kept himself close to the ruins as he used them as cover and entered them once or twice in hopes of finding someone. The households themselves were barely holding it together, finding one with a rooftop seemed to be almost non-existing and any ideas of hanging out inside them was a most likely a death sentence. The bounty hunter never took the opportunity to speak with any of his distant family members about the Atosaki Family and was thus going in blind in terms of their tricks and abilities. After a good few minutes, Æthelwulf found himself about to turn around the building when he spotted something moving further ahead. Putting his back against the wall, he went on to inspect his opponent and spotting two humanoids walking at the centre of the ruined city. Willing to take a risk, Æthelwulf suddenly stormed out onto the road ahead of them and began firing off a barrage of blunt bullets towards them: One gun for each of them as he aimed for Lucia's legs while going for the head on the armoured woman. Though the crackling of the flames had drastically decreased the sounds of gunfire, Malphas being the alert bodyguard she was, was able to reflexively move her body to push Lucia out of the way, taking her spot as the bullet aimed for Lucia's leg hit Malphas' instead. Though the armour had absorbed much of the impact of the blunt bullet, it did leave a noticeable dent in the dark metal. Her leg as well also felt a shock of pain hit it but she felt as though it was nothing more but an irritation that was to distract her. Lucia fell to the ground quickly, knowing this was the way that Malphas told her to get down in a hurry, flattening herself out and awaiting Malphas's command to get back up. "There's someone else here milady. We should leave the vicinity as quickly as we can." She recommended worryingly, walking over Lucia's side before holding her hand outwards. Using her Reflector magic on herself, Malphas was ready for any more bullets coming here way as she signalled Lucia to stay near her. Æthelwulf had made himself known to the two woman, with both Lucia and Malphas smiling at the circumstances. "Aren't you the handsome one? Shame I'm going to have to burn that pretty face of yours off. No killing am I right?" Lucia joked as fire erupted from her very hands. Æthelwulf didn't respond to the young woman's comment with words, instead, he simply pointed his gun towards her head and pulled the trigger continuously. It was evident that the armoured woman was protecting her and by doing this he'd keep them occupied while letting him control the course of the fight. He proceeded to take aim with his other gun towards the other woman, waiting for the right opportunity to shot as to have her to choose whether or not she'd protect herself or Lucia. Laying siege to the moment, Æthelwulf's free gun began to emit sparks before suddenly unleashing multiple bullets infused with Lightning Magic, this being a Spark Shot. Lucia however was already retreating out of the way after watching Æthelwulf fire at Malphas mutliple times to no avail, as her magic allowed her to deflect the bullets right back from where they come from, sharing the same bullet storm Æthelwulf was kind enough to give. Lucia disappeared into the flames as she separated them out of the way and into rubble, keeping near as to monitor Æthelwulf from a safer distance. For now, Malphas was to take care of Æthelwulf until Lucia could get a good hit on him. Malphas brought her hand to her mouth and 'yawned', a way of taunting the Gun Magic user in order to up his game. "Your efforts are futile human. Give up now or you may face the consequences." She threatened, lifting her blade into the air and swinging it to point at her opponent. The Reflector magic was still proving to be Malphas' strong point as she only really used it for defense, with her blade acting as the offense must it require. Given his opponent's words, Æthelwulf understood that one of his opponents wasn't a human, to say the least, but must've been summoned. But the questioned remained what type of summon, revealing this would grant him some better insight into his opponent's abilities but he'd have to make due with what he's got. Seeing as his opponent was clearly underestimating him, Æthelwulf wanted to make swift work of her while both she and her summoner didn't know his abilities. The bounty hunter had during this whole time continued firing off bullets against the opponent, seeing as half of them were being deflected and made to intercept the incoming fire; Æthelwulf simply had to change his rate of fire. As he fired, the bounty hunter suddenly made a small pause before launching another Spark Shot. But this time, it was accompanied by a bullet with Dispelling Magic, making sure that it'd disable her magic before hitting her armour head on. The initial Spark Shot that was fired off from before definitely gave Malphas an idea of what to prepare for the next time she was to face it. However, she forgot about her Reflector Magic being active and thus reflexively flinched away from the path of the bullets out of unnecessary fear. Although she was able to narrowly miss the dispelling shot's bullet, the spark shot had shot right onto Malphas, having been absorbed by the Reflector aura and sent right back into the bullet for no notable effect. Having shielded her face from the spark shot, Malphas was surprised to have come from the situation alive, looking at her hands and overwhelmed with relief as a grateful smile formed. A tear almost formed in her eye as Lucia ran out from the fire to hug Malphas. It was obvious that they weren't thinking at the time, and even more obvious that Malphas forgot about the activation of her Reflector, already having thought she had turned it off to conserve power. "I thought you were going to die." Lucia cried out worryingly. "Me too." Malphas said traumatized as Lucia held onto her and patted her back, with faint whispers telling her it was going to be okay. Witnessing the two women embracing one another was certainly a heartwarming view for the audience, one that brought tears to their eyes and smiles across their faces. But Æthelwulf wasn't the audience. If anything, this spectacle was viewed as more of an insult if anything. Being able to act so casually in the heat of battle. The bounty hunter wasn't going to let this chance slip away as the moment Lucia started talking, Æthelwulf was already on his way. Using his Slowing Magic, Æthelwulf caused himself to appear as if moving at incredible speed but in reality, everything was just getting slowed to significantly. He holstered his left gun while making his way towards them, giving him a free hand to use for the incoming attack. As Malphas responded to Lucia's comment, the marksman was already next to her. He proceeded to use his element of surprise and reach out to touch the armoured woman with his free hand, effectively disabling her magic while making contact, while the other was pulling the trigger. The gun was almost at point-blank range and aimed at her head, Æthelwulf knew that the woman had been summoned and that he could then fire without risk. Unlike earlier, this bullet wasn't blunt. As the bullet fired into Malphas, the Celestial Spirit faded away back into her realm where she could then heal for the time being. Lucia was then heartbroken with what Æthelwulf had done and proceeded to actually tear up to the loss of her friend. Never once did her mother, who had previously held Malphas, allow her to get harmed like that, though then again, her father wasn't as heartless to execute A Celestial Spirit in such a way. Lucia looked at Æthelwulf and grinned, trying to cover the mixed emotions of sadness and anger building up in her heart. She was beginning to look more like her father in the eyes of the Atosakis that watched from the crowds. Her Fire Magic has shown improvement since she has met her father, having practised with Selene on many occasions despite the difference of magical power in both fields. The flames around Lucia seemed to burn even brighter, seemingly affected by her emotions. Using the opportunity of Æthelwulf being right there, Lucia cocked both arms back with a malicious grin on her face, "Guess I'm going to enjoy burning that handsome face of yours off after all." She whispered before throwing her hands forward. The fire she had collected had been powered by her own fire she had produced and sent forward in a swift throw of fire that would continue to burn like a flamethrower. It was unlike Æthelwulf to simply stand there and listen to her, normally he would've simply gone and shot his opponent at a situation like this. Maybe he was growing sentimental he thought to himself as she wept, but seeing her grin and talk big to him he realised that it was actually disappointment: This is ridiculous. He thought afterwards as he proceeded to respond to the young woman's attack, using his free hand to intercept and take hold Lucia's fist while his dispelling magic did the rest. Wasting no time raising his other hand and pointing it towards her stomach, Æthelwulf was at least going to spare the woman a shot to the head. Pulling the trigger with another electrifying bullet shot. He was aiming to end things right here, using his magic to prevent her from using her flames while aiming to knock her out of the battle and tournament as a whole. Lucia didn't hesitate to move her arms at once when Æthelwulf had gripped onto hers, using his arm to swing into his other arm as to push it out of the way. This struggle of hers was a desperate attempt to break free from Æthelwulf, giving her a chance to move him aim away and just scrape the side of her body. Pulling her arms back, Lucia took her arms out of the grip that held and prevented her magic, taking the chance to retreat into the flames nearby as it grew fiercer when she passed through. Using this as a sort of block for Æthelwulf's speed. With fire everywhere, this arena quickly became her territory, and with her ability over fire to be more of manipulating rather than generating it herself, she knew she had a chance to stand against him. The flames that were lit in the ruined buildings became tempered with rage and fear as they became more ferocious, with creaking even being heard from the outside. The fire would conceal her appearance and with the more smoke emitted from the flames, the better. Æthelwulf was initially surprised by the young woman's agility and reaction to his attack, but his admiration was short-lived as he realised that was still stuck having to deal with her. The bounty hunter had finally learned what magic's his opponent was manipulating, but still remaining cautious as she could very well have something else up her sleeve. Knowing at least that she uses fire and can summon forth creatures to assist her in battle, Æthelwulf assessed that the roles had turned on him. His opponent was at an advantage in this arena and now had the element of surprise. Trying to pursue her was meaningless and thus decided to remain at his current position, effectively making himself the prey and her the hunter. Still holding onto a gun in his right arm and nothing in his left, Æthelwulf realised that more magical energies had been consumed compared to what he had used. Thinking back on the fight that just occurred and coming to the conclusion that they weren't the cause of it, the bounty hunter looked instead at the environment. "Tch, might be on equal grounds after all." He said as he continued to watch his surroundings, making sure to remain vigilant for any attempts to strike at him. Lucia had delved deep into the flames and would watch Æthelwulf from behind the fires, plotting her revenge before noticing the flames in a tall building not too far from Æthelwulf. Watching the same on the other side, Lucia decided to fight from the shadows of the flames where Æthelwulf couldn't see her and proceed to with a course of action. Using the flames from the nearby building, Lucia pulled the flames through the building's window and towards Æthelwulf, also pulling the flames from the building opposite from the doorway into the same target where they would both meet. In a way, it was more to trap Æthelwulf as the large size the flames would take on as it was pulled out would cover a couple of metres in radius. Even though the smoke might not be on her side, the fire definitely was. Reaction out of reflex to the sound of glass shattering so close to him, Æthelwulf turned and his gaze along with it. His eyes turning wide, one that didn't showcase shock but more as if he had caught a thief trying to steal his stuff and was really irritated about it, Æthelwulf activated his slow magic before running and hurling himself away from there. Making sure to create a safe distance between himself and the fire, the bounty hunter looked back at the damage that the fire was causing and was growing even more irritated over the young girl's methods. It took a moment to realise it, but Æthelwulf soon noticed that lower parts of the coat had been caught on fire and proceeded to sigh as he took it off and threw it to the sidelines. Seeing as the young lady was still hiding, either inside the flames that he just dodged or nearby, he went on to draw his other gun and circulate the spot in hopes of finding her. Use your flames as much as you like girl... Unless if you're a Slayer-type then you can't uphold that form forever, nor can you consume it for magic. Our timers are ticking, but yours won't be able to keep this up. He thought to himself while awaiting the woman's next move. She was getting quite frustrated but, nonetheless persevered through her failure and continued to watch Æthelwulf. Coming closer to Æthelwulf, Lucia presented herself with a smile before bowing. She was out in the open but there was little time to react as she swung her head up and shot her fists forward, pulling the fires her direction and towards Æthelwulf, which were larger due to the mix of both generated and pre-existing flames that she manipulated. Upon the flames consuming her body, Lucia's position would only disappear until it was apparent that she was running towards Æthelwulf with flaming fists alongside the wave of fire she brought forth. Two attacks aimed at the Bounty Hunter, it was really her delaying the bounty hunter in an attempt to throw him off. Being unable to fathom why the woman showed herself before attacking, Æthelwulf was still taken aback by her quick response and counter as her fists flung forward, bringing forth the surrounding fires with her. His first reaction was to raise his left hand and pull the trigger with a dispelling magic in the chamber, only to find that only parts of the flames had died down and that the rest was still coming for him. Triggering his slowing magic yet again to give him some to react, but not quickly enough before having it reach his left and force him to drop his pistol. Cursing under his breath as he took a step back, seeing that going through the flames was the only way to escape it, he took a leap of faith. Still keeping his slowing magic active as to give the flames as little time as possible to burn through his clothing, Æthelwulf soon appeared on the other side without having the fires being attached to his body but undoubtedly being much hotter. The bounty hunter had reached his destination and thus the Slowing Magic had subsided, forcing him to face the incoming mage without it. Responding in the same manner that Lucia was, Æthelwulf charged towards her as soon as he landed. Having only one spare hand to use, Æthelwulf reached out from below and took hold of the woman's right wrist, pulling it upwards while removing her magic but unable to stop her other punch. He took the punch straight to the ribs, staggering ever so slightly backward in response kept hold of her. The bounty hunter looked down at her with a most unpleasant expression, one of annoyance, as he had removed her ability to produce any more flames and raised his other hand towards her. Which still held onto a gun and was already pulling the trigger in order to shot out another Spark Shot. In an attempt to go out on her own choice, Lucia surprisingly pulled the gun to her chest, much to Æthelwulf's surprise. There was a malicious look on Lucia's face, a face that her father expressed commonly, there was still that Hogi blood running through her veins. Giving Æthelwulf a wink and blowing a kiss, the firearm clicked and sent a Spark Shot right into Lucia, who instantly regretted her decision. Lightning sparked all over her body as she could feel the energy surge through her muscles. Her eyes widened with fear and her mouth opened in pain, sending out a howling scream of agony as she backed away from Æthelwulf. After only a second of pain, chuckling only remained as Lucia fell to the ground in exhaustion, even though she didn't use too much power in the battle at all. Smoke drifted off her body from the sparks, her chest breathing in and out rapidly. Using the time she had left before the referees could notice what was going on, Lucia looked directly at Æthelwulf with tired but flirting eyes. "Heh. Did you think that you would be the one to decide how this fight ends? Did you think you would have been the one with the last laugh? You're wrong because I chose how this fight ends. Me, I chose this, and I don't regret it one bit." She smirked, now gazing into Æthelwulf's soul with innocent eyes. "Enjoy your victory Sibiko, there's only one fight left. Break a leg or an arm. Whichever one happens." Her words drifted off into the end as her body was teleported out of the arena and left Æthelwulf as the victor. The bounty hunter remained stationed on the spot for a few more moments even after the woman had been teleported away, he never gave Lucia any response to her actions nor did he intend to do so. As the smoke and fires surrounding the arena died down in exchange for the sound of applauds, Æthelwulf looked up and into the crowds to spot the other families. While the Atosaki family's reaction was obvious due to receiving yet another loss, the Sibiko Family's reaction was mixed with most of them not responding at all. Out of all the battles so far, Æthelwulf's had clearly been the least appreciated as even the crowd's own cheers were significantly lower than in previous battles. Looking over at the current Matriarch of the Sibiko Family and then over at the Representative, Æthelwulf's own gaze met them with resentment and anger as he finally started making his way to the gates. Picking his other gun along the way and stopping for a moment to look back at the spot where Lucia had fallen: "Idiot..." Was the only thing he uttered before heading for the exit.